In a brief filed today with the Oklahoma Supreme Court, plaintiffs in the lawsuit Rev. Lori Walke v. Ryan Walters asked the court to block state officials from fulfilling Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters’ latest requests for bibles and bible-infused instructional materials.
The plaintiffs noted that pending before the Oklahoma Supreme Court is a request for an injunction to stop Walters from spending millions in taxpayer dollars on bibles and from implementing his mandate that all public schools in the state incorporate the bible into their curricula. The Oklahoma State Department of Education submitted new requests for proposals in January and February for 55,000 Protestant Bibles and “supplemental instructional materials that effectively integrate the Bible and character education into elementary-level social studies curriculum.” The plaintiffs then asked state officials to agree to pause the requests until the court issues a final ruling in the plaintiffs’ case, but the officials did not agree to do so.
In today’s brief, the plaintiffs demonstrate how the new requests for proposals are unlawful for the same reasons as the original requests for bibles that the Department of Education issued last September. This includes that the proposals would violate the Oklahoma Constitution’s religious freedom protections by using state funds to support one particular religion; would use state funds to support an unlawful rule (Walters’ bible-instruction mandate) and would spend public money without legislative authority.
The plaintiffs are represented by the Freedom From Religion Foundation, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Oklahoma Foundation and Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law & Justice. The organizations offered the following statements:
Annie Laurie Gaylor, co-president of the Freedom From Religion Foundation, says, “Oklahoma families, especially the 26 percent who have no religious affiliation, the 8 percent who are Catholic and the 2 percent who belong to non-Christian faiths, should not have to contend with religious proselytization in their children’s public school classrooms. Nor should Oklahomans be taxed in order to promote Ryan Walters’ preferred holy book.”
Rachel Laser, president and CEO of Americans United, comments, “The separation of church and state guarantees that families and students — not politicians — get to decide if, when and how to engage with religion. Superintendent Ryan Walters continues to abuse the power of his office to advance a Christian nationalist agenda and impose his personal religious beliefs on other people’s children. Not on our watch. We’re proud to defend the religious freedom of all Oklahomans, from Christians to the nonreligious.”
Daniel Mach, director of the ACLU Program on Freedom of Religion and Belief, states, “This Bible mandate is a deliberate power grab that violates Oklahoma law and flouts the separation of church and state. Public-school students, families, and teachers — and the taxpayers who support them — deserve better.”
Megan Lambert, legal director of ACLU of Oklahoma, remarks, “Oklahoma schools should be a safe and welcoming environment, focused on providing an equal education to all students, regardless of faith. Today’s brief is another demonstration of how communities can come together for a common fight to reject the use of religion as a cover for repression. We must continue to protect the individual rights of students and families to choose their own faith or no faith at all. The separation of church and state is a bedrock of our nation’s founding principles.”
Colleen McCarty, executive director, Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, says, “The costs of these outlandish actions by our state superintendent continue to climb and he shows no signs of slowing. We’re facing a budget shortfall and Oklahomans simply cannot afford these stunts for much longer. Oklahomans need a leader who will maintain the rule of law and educate our kids.”
Here’s some case background.
Walters issued a mandate on June 27, 2024, unilaterally requiring every public school in Oklahoma to “incorporate the Bible, which includes the Ten Commandments,” into their curricula, an abuse of power that ignored state laws. Walters then fast-tracked plans to spend $3 million of taxpayer money on 55,000 King James Bibles. Walters said he wants to spend another $3 million on bibles next year.
The lawsuit Walke v. Walters was filed Oct. 17, 2024, on behalf of 32 Oklahomans of diverse faiths who object to Walters’ extremist agenda that imposes his personal religious beliefs on other people’s children. The lawsuit asserts that Walters’ plans to spend state funds on bibles violate the Oklahoma Constitution’s religious freedom protections because the government would be spending public money to support religion, as well as favoring one religion over others by requiring the use of a Protestant version of the bible. Walters’ actions also violate the Oklahoma Administrative Procedures Act and other state statutes because officials did not follow required rules to implement new policies and spend public money.
The plaintiffs come from various faith and nonfaith traditions, including Baptist, Catholic, Presbyterian (U.S.A.) and United Church of Christ, and atheist, agnostic or nonreligious. Some are of Indigenous heritage, and some have family situations — such as LGBTQ-plus members or children with special educational needs — that cause particular concerns around teaching the bible in public schools, especially around bullying.
The defendants in the lawsuit are Walters; the Oklahoma State Department of Education; the Oklahoma State Board of Education and its members; and the Oklahoma Office of Management and Enterprise Services and some of its officials.
The attorneys on the team representing the plaintiffs include Patrick Elliott and Samuel Grover at FFRF; Alex J. Luchenitser and Luke Anderson at Americans United; Daniel Mach and Heather L. Weaver at the ACLU; Megan Lambert at the ACLU of Oklahoma; and Colleen McCarty and Brent Rowland at Oklahoma Appleseed.
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a national educational nonprofit with more than 40,000 members, founded in 1978, that works to protect the constitutional separation between state and church and educate about nontheism.
Founded in 1947, Americans United for Separation of Church and State is a religious freedom advocacy organization that educates Americans about the importance of church-state separation in safeguarding religious freedom.
The ACLU of Oklahoma works to secure liberty, justice, and equity for all Oklahomans through advocacy, litigation and legislation, leading by example and fueled by people power.
For more than 100 years, the ACLU has worked in courts, legislatures, and communities to protect the constitutional rights of all people. With a nationwide network of offices and millions of members and supporters, the ACLU takes on the toughest civil liberties fights in pursuit of liberty and justice for all.
Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law and Justice is a 501(c)3 public interest law firm that fights for the rights and opportunities of every Oklahoman.
